Apr 22, 2009

animal welfare/animal rights

There is a woeful lack of understanding out in the general public about the difference between animal welfare and animal rights. Well-meaning people are unfortunately supporting groups that are actually working to undermine the very things in which they believe.
Animal welfare wants to improve the lot of domesticated animals by such actions as outlawing cruel practices with livestock (such as raising veal calves in tiny boxes where they can't turn around), minimizing live animal experimentation as much as possible while acknowledging that some research is necessary and valuable (for instance, dogs suffer many of the same diseases as humans and thus are an excellent research model that benefits both species), halting animal cruelty such as dog fighting and cock fighting.
Animal rights wants to stop any sort of use of animals by humans, including barring you from owning pets. They don't often say this in public, but I have a letter somewhere from the founder of one of the most powerful groups, stating just that goal. So what are you truly supporting when you give one of these groups money? You are helping them force you to get rid of your beloved dog(s), cat(s), or whatever animal companions you may have.
It's not always clear cut, either. Some groups veer back and forth from one side of the dichotomy to the other, holding good positions and doing valuable work on one specific issue while going over the line on another.
I'm not going to name specific groups -- I'll probably get hassled enough just for going this far. But I would urge everyone to fully investigate the goals and practices of any group before offering support. Some of the most extreme groups can actually be classified as domestic terrorists who have bombed offices or universities, freed lab animals (who can no more fend for themselves in the wild than most of us could), and committed other illegal acts. Put your money where your true goals are -- if you want to support canine health or TNR programs for feral cats or stop greyhound racing or whatever, be sure whatever group you choose agrees with your goals and doesn't want to go further than you would want.

3 comments:

Gayle said...

Thanks for writing this because I know a lot of people don't understand the difference. I was surprised to hear something about one of the large groups I supported over the years. You really do have to do some research and see where they stand on the issues.

Cheryl S. Smith said...

Thanks, Gayle. Unfortunately, many people, including a lot of stars in Hollywood, don't realize what they're really supporting. I wish all that money was being funneled into better organizations.

Terry Albert said...

I wrote an article about this once because so many people think if they donate to HSUS that their local Humane Society gets some money. Not so. There's a lot of confusion out there.